Saint Guirec

Last updated

Saint Guirec (c. 6th century), according to oral tradition, was a Welsh monk who sought to establish a monastery in Celtic Brittany. In the region of Traou-Perros is where Guirec chose to found his new community.

The Oratory of Saint-Guirec OratoriumStGuirec Ploumanach.jpg
The Oratory of Saint-Guirec

He allegedly arrived in Brittany in a stone trough pulled by angels, landing on the small beach that now bears his name. A shrine first built in the 12th century called L'Oratoire de Saint-Guirec (the Oratory of Saint Guirec) stands in the bay at Ploumanac'h with a chapel on the facing beach. Female pilgrims have come for centuries to call upon the prayerful intercession of the monk saint for their seafaring husbands' safety. Young women also come to ask Guirec's prayers that they would soon find a husband. The tradition of putting a pin in the nose of the saint's statue is said to encourage Guirec to acquire the blessing of a marriage within one year for the young pilgrim. The 14th century wooden statue – the nose of which having consequently disappeared – was placed in the chapel and replaced by a stone statue in 1904.

Saint Guirec is commemorated locally by the Roman Catholic Church in Brittany in conjunction with a traditional Breton Pardon ceremony on the eve of the Feast of the Ascension of Christ into heaven. 'Ascension Day' is celebrated the fortieth day after Easter.

See also

Related Research Articles

Monastery Complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplace(s) of monks or nuns

A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which may be a chapel, church, or temple, and may also serve as an oratory, or in the case of communities anything from a single building housing only one senior and two or three junior monks or nuns, to vast complexes and estates housing tens or hundreds. A monastery complex typically comprises a number of buildings which include a church, dormitory, cloister, refectory, library, balneary and infirmary, and outlying granges. Depending on the location, the monastic order and the occupation of its inhabitants, the complex may also include a wide range of buildings that facilitate self-sufficiency and service to the community. These may include a hospice, a school, and a range of agricultural and manufacturing buildings such as a barn, a forge, or a brewery.

Tudwal Breton bishop and saint

Saint Tudwal, also known as Tual, Tudgual, Tugdual, Tugual, Pabu, Papu, or Tugdualus (Latin), was a Breton monk, considered to be one of the seven founder saints of Brittany.

Rocamadour Commune in Occitania, France

Rocamadour is a commune in the Lot department in Southwestern France. It lies in the former province of Quercy.

Perros-Guirec Commune in Brittany, France

Perros-Guirec is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Brittany in northwestern France. It has been a seaside resort since the end of the 19th century.

Saint-Brieuc Cathedral

Saint-Brieuc Cathedral is a Roman Catholic church located in the town of Saint-Brieuc, Brittany, France, and dedicated to Saint Stephen.

Cézembre

Cézembre is an island in Brittany, in the Ille-et-Vilaine département of France, near Saint-Malo. The island is uninhabited, with a surface area of approximately 18 hectares, a length of 750 metres (2,461 ft), and a maximum width of 250 metres (820 ft).

Vannes Cathedral Roman Catholic Church

Vannes Cathedral is a Roman Catholic church dedicated to Saint Peter in Vannes, Brittany, France. The cathedral is the seat of the Bishop of Vannes.

Branwalator or Breward, also referred to as Branwalader, was a British saint whose relics lay at Milton Abbas in Dorset and Branscombe in Devon. Believed to come from Brittany, he also gives his name to the parish of Saint Brélade, Jersey. "Brelade" is a corruption of "Branwalader". He is also known as Breward or Branuvelladurus or Brélade and Broladre in French.

Budoc Medieval bishop

Saint Budoc of Dol was a Bishop of Dol, venerated after his death as a saint in both Brittany and Devon. Saint Budoc is the patron of Plourin Ploudalmezeau in Finistère where his relics are preserved. His feast day was celebrated on 8 December, the date still used in Devon, but in Brittany this was moved to 9 December.

Dol Cathedral Roman Catholic church located in Dol-de-Bretagne

Dol-de-Bretagne Cathedral is a Roman Catholic church located in Dol-de-Bretagne. The cathedral is dedicated to Saint Samson, one of the founding saints of Brittany. It was formerly the seat of the Archbishop of Dol, one of the nine ancient bishoprics of Brittany. The cathedral suffered badly from the excesses of the French Revolution, becoming successively a "Temple de la Raison", then a stable, then a warehouse. Revolutionaries caused considerable damage and many treasures were lost. When it eventually returned to being a house of worship, its role as a bishopric was abolished by the Concordat of 1801 when the Dol diocese was merged into the Dioceses of Rennes and Saint-Malo. The Concordat of 1801 was an agreement between Napoleon and Pope Pius VII, signed on 15 July 1801 in Paris, which sought national reconciliation between revolutionaries and Catholics. The Concordat was abrogated by the law of 1905 on the separation of church and state.

Saint-Malo Cathedral

Saint-Malo Cathedral is a Roman Catholic Cathedral located in Saint-Malo, Brittany. The church was founded in dedication to Saint Vincent of Saragossa, and constitutes a national monument of France. It was built in a mix of Roman and Gothic styles during the episcopacy of Jean de Châtillon (1146-1163) on the site of an ancient church founded in the 7th-century. The cathedral suffered damage during WW2 when the steeple toppled onto the Sacred Heart Chapel. An organ which had been built in 1893 by Louis Debierre was destroyed. On 21 May 1972, after twenty-eight years of work, a ceremony was held to celebrate the completion of the restoration.

Pardon (ceremony)

A pardon is a typically Breton form of pilgrimage and one of the most traditional demonstrations of popular Catholicism in Brittany. Of very ancient origin, probably dating back to the conversion of the country by the Celtic monks, it is comparable to the pattern days of pre-famine Ireland.

Sainte-Anne-dAuray Commune in Brittany, France

Sainte-Anne-d'Auray is a commune in the Morbihan department of Brittany in north-western France. It is the third most popular pilgrimage site in France, after Lourdes and Lisieux.

Saint-Avit-Sénieur Commune in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France

Saint-Avit-Sénieur is a commune in the Dordogne department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France.

Chapel of the Ascension, Jerusalem

The Chapel of the Ascension is a chapel and shrine located on the Mount of Olives, in the At-Tur district of Jerusalem. Part of a larger complex consisting first of a Christian church and monastery, then an Islamic mosque, it is located on a site the faithful traditionally believed to be the earthly spot where Jesus ascended into Heaven after His Resurrection. It houses a slab of stone believed to contain one of His footprints. The Status Quo, a 250-year-old understanding between religious communities, applies to the site.

Saint Maudez Breton saint

Saint Maudez is a Breton saint who lived in the 5th or 6th century. He is also known as Maudé, Maudet, Maodez or Modez (Breton), Maudetus (Latin), Mandé (French) and Mawes. In the Breton calendar his feast is 18 November.

Abbey of Santa Giustina

The Abbey of Santa Giustina is a 10th-century Benedictine abbey complex located in front of the Prato della Valle in central Padua, region of Veneto, Italy. Adjacent to the former monastery is the basilica church of Santa Giustina, initially built in the 6th century, but whose present form derives from a 17th-century reconstruction.

Mont-Saint-Michel Abbey

The Mont-Saint-Michel Abbey is an abbey located within the city and island of Mont-Saint-Michel in Normandy, in the department of Manche.

Ploumanac'h is a village port in a natural harbour, part of the commune of Perros-Guirec, in the arrondissement of Lannion, in the Côtes-d'Armor department of the Brittany region of France. In 2015 it was voted "the village most preferred by the French". It lies 3 kilometres north-west of the town Perros-Guirec.

Îlot Saint-Michel Uninhabited island in the English Channel off the coast of Brittany in Côtes-dArmor, France

Îlot Saint-Michel is an uninhabited island in the English Channel off the coast of Brittany in Côtes-d'Armor, France, near the resort of Sables-d'Or-les-Pins. It is part of the commune of Erquy and is accessible by foot during low tide.

References